Your permit expired long ago: your options to get back in

Terms used

• Arraigo — Arraigo is a route to a residence permit based on your ties to Spain, such as work, family, training or social roots.
• Oficina de Extranjería — The Oficina de Extranjería is the provincial immigration office that receives residence applications.
• Requerimiento — A requerimiento is an official request to fix or add missing items in your application file.
• TIE — The TIE is the foreigner identity card that shows your residence permit in Spain.

Key rules

• Your status: After the window closes you are irregular, so a fine or expulsion is possible.
• Best first check: If you once held a permit that lapsed and you still live in Spain, check second-chance arraigo first.
• Fallback: If you do not qualify, leaving and applying for a visa from your home country is the safe route.
• New window: No new filing window is open unless a new regulation says so.

Where you stand

Once the window to fix a lapsed permit has closed, you are in irregular stay. That exposes you to a fine or to expulsion. You have three choices:

1. Apply for second-chance arraigo (or another arraigo route) from inside Spain.
2. Make a new residence application in Spain, if you meet the legal conditions.
3. Leave Spain and apply for a new visa from your home country.

No new general filing window is open unless a new regulation says so. Check with the immigration office before you rely on one.

How to choose

Start with one question: did you once hold a residence authorisation in Spain that lapsed and was not renewed?

• Yes, and you still live in Spain. Look at second-chance arraigo first. It is the route made for you.
• No, or you cannot meet its conditions. Ask whether another arraigo route (social, labour, family or socioformative) fits your case.
• Nothing fits. Plan to leave and apply for a visa from your home country. A planned departure is safer than staying irregular and hoping.

Eligibility depends on your case. Ask a lawyer or the immigration office before you file.

Second-chance arraigo

Second-chance arraigo lets former permit holders get a new one-year authorisation without starting from zero. The main requirements are:

• You held a residence authorisation before, and it lapsed without renewal.
• You have stayed in Spain continuously.
• Your criminal record is clean.
• You can show a link to work or training.

The route is aimed at people whose permit expired no more than a set number of years ago. Ask the immigration office for the current limit, and check the exact conditions in force, as they can change by instruction.

If you file in Spain

File with the immigration office (Oficina de Extranjería) of your province, or through the electronic platform. The timeline, documents and checklist below show the steps in order. Two points are worth knowing here:

• If the office sends a request to fix defects (a requerimiento), you have about 10 working days to answer. Do not let it lapse.
• If you are approved, you must book a police appointment and give fingerprints within one month to get your TIE.

If you are refused, you can appeal. A new application is only possible if the legal conditions are still met.

If you leave

Leaving means applying for a new visa from your home country. Do not leave without a plan. The warning below lists actions that make a lapse worse, including ignoring official notices and assuming expulsion is automatic.

Timeline and deadlines

• File your application with the immigration office of your province or through the electronic platform: as soon as you have the form and documents ready

• The office admits your file for processing: after filing

• Answer any request to fix defects in your file: within about 10 working days of the request

• Wait for the decision; if none comes in the legal period, the application is normally treated as refused: after the office admits your file

• If approved, book a National Police appointment and give your fingerprints for the TIE: within 1 month of approval

• If refused, file the optional appeal to the same office: within 1 month of the refusal

• If refused, go to court instead: within 2 months of the refusal

Check the current deadlines with the immigration office, as the rules for a regularisation can differ from a normal application.

Documents you need

• The official application form for your route, filed with the immigration office (Oficina de Extranjería) of your province or through the electronic filing platform, together with your supporting documents.

• The fee form for the foreigner identity card (TIE), Modelo 790 código 012, which you need once your application is approved.

Checklist

• Confirm you once held a residence authorisation in Spain that lapsed and was not renewed.

• Check that you are still living in Spain and have a clean criminal record.

• Find proof of a link to work or training.

• Ask the immigration office or a lawyer whether you qualify for second-chance arraigo, another arraigo route or a new application.

• Book your fingerprint appointment within 1 month of approval.

Actions that make a lapse worse

• Ignoring a notice: If you ignore a notice or sanction proceeding from the immigration office (Oficina de Extranjería), the administration decides without hearing you. That can mean a fine, or expulsion with an entry ban. If delivery fails, the notice is published in the official gazette, so missing it is no defence. Read every notice as soon as it arrives and reply within the deadline, usually 10 or 15 days. You can still file an appeal within the legal deadlines, so act quickly.

• Leaving without a plan: Leaving Spain on your own does not by itself create a ban. But if an expulsion or return order was issued, you can face an entry ban of up to five years (up to ten in serious cases), and it blocks entry to the whole Schengen area. An unpaid fine can also complicate a new visa application. Before you leave, find out whether any expulsion order or unpaid fine exists in your name, and settle it if you can.

• Using shortcuts: False documents can bring criminal liability and lead to refusal or revocation. A fake or rented empadronamiento (town hall registration) can count as a false statement. Intermediaries who sell contracts or job offers may be committing fraud, and you can lose your money and face a ban or expulsion. Use only a registered lawyer or gestor, and give the office only documents that are true and in your name.

• Assuming expulsion is automatic: Staying irregularly is normally punished with a fine, and expulsion only replaces it where there are extra circumstances, such as a criminal record or risk of absconding. Expulsion carries an entry ban, normally up to 5 years. A short lapse with a renewal request usually ends in a fine or no sanction. Show your family ties, length of residence and any route to regularise, and appeal to the administrative courts if expulsion is ordered.

Frequently asked questions

Does second-chance arraigo mean I start from zero?

No, second-chance arraigo lets you get a new one-year authorisation without starting from zero, as long as you are in Spain and once held a residence authorisation that lapsed. You also need a clean criminal record and a link to work or training.

What can I do if my new application is refused?

If your application is refused, you can file an optional appeal to the same office within 1 month, or go to court within 2 months.

Is there a new filing window I can use right now?

No, no new filing window is open unless a new regulation creates one. The 2026 regularisation window closed on 30 June 2026, so look at second-chance arraigo or the other arraigo routes if you qualify.